Notes from an aspiring veterinarian.

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How to Change the World

Imagine a land where no one inflicted harm on others, where we were healthy and nothing suffered for the benefit of others. Now realise that this is not an imaginary utopia. This lifestyle is completely possible in our society and in my opinion is not a lot to ask for; a basic right.

Every day thousands upon thousands of murders take place and we are indoctrinated into believing that it is a nescessary act. We have the power to change this by changing the most basic thing in our lives: our diet. Veganism is the answer.

Now it is highly doubtful that the public encourages animal cruelty. In fact, in the UK, out of the top thousand charities, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is in 12th position for amount of money donated! Considering this it is unbelieveable that we still consume animal products. The only rational explanation of this consumption is a lack of knowledge and a disconnection from animals.

Every minute of every hour of every day thousands of animals are slaughtered for the pleasure of humans. Slaughter typically commences by a form of stunning to make the animal unconcious (which in a lot of cases is inaffective). The most common methods of stunning are an electric bolt to the head, an electric current and gas chambers. The animal then has his or her throat slit and is left to bleed out. It is highly unlikely that any person would be eager to kill another living creature and many cannot stomach footage of slaughter houses. Despite this, the majority of the population still consume meat and whilst some are aware of the horrible conditions of abbatoirs and others are not, they are all very much disconnected from how their food is processed and where it comes from.

So what is wrong with being vegetarian? Why is veganism the answer? It has gradually become more accepted in society to be vegetarian but to be vegan is often viewed as hippy, extreme and quite frankly, ridiculous. It is understandable that if one has been raised eating meat veganism can seem daunting and extreme. This may be because veganism is not a diet. It is a lifestyle. In the words of PETA, vegans believe that “Animals are not ours to eat, experiment on, use for entertainment or abuse in any way”. Contrary to popular opinion, the dairy and egg industries do abuse and cause unnescessary harm and suffering to the animals involved.

On many dairy farms, cows are artificially inseminated to make them pregnant. Immediately after giving birth, the calves are removed from their mothers, never to see them again. Male calves are sold to become veal and female calves are enslaved and raised to suffer the same fate as their mothers. The natural lifespan of a cow is around twenty years but in the dairy industry they are slaughtered at just a quarter of that. When it is determined that a cow is not producing enough milk to make keeping her alive financially profitable, she is sent to the slaughter house to meet her premature death.

In the egg industry, male chicks are destroyed as they are deemed useless. A very common method of killing male chicks is to crush them in a machine that resembles a kitchen appliance; the blender. Essentially these babies are blended alive, their corpses used for cheap meat. A single chicken will lay over three hundred eggs when naturally they lay just seventeen. Clearly, this wreaks havoc on their bodies and they are more prone to disease. To combat disease, as in all other animal industries, these poor creatures are force fed antibiotics, regardless of whether or not they are ill in a process called mass medication. In the United States, 80% of all antibiotics are given to livestock. This unnecessary use of antibiotics contributes greatly to antimicrobial resistance. Research has also suggested that antimicrobial resistance can be passed onto humans through the consumption of meat that came from an animal that was administered antibiotics, clearly affecting our health.

This brings me onto another point; human health. Consumption of meat and animal products is the world’s leading cause of heart disease. A lot of research has shown that a vegan diet not only prevents heart disease but can also reverse it! Many doctors actually reccommend a plant-based diet. Balanced vegan diets contain no cholesterol, which is why they act in this way. It has also been shown that animal products are a major cause of cancer and that eggs inhibit iron absorption, leading to anaemia. Contrary to popular opinion, a balanced vegan diet will NOT weaken you. A terrible diet of any kind definitely will. Many healthy and strong atheletes are vegans. For example, the boxer David Haye or Scott Durek, the ultramarathon runner.

Furthermore, veganism is not only good for us but good for the planet. Animal agriculture uses a third of freshwater and is responsible for up to 51% of greenhouse emissions. 9% of all carbon dioxide emissions, 40% of all methane emissions and 65% of all nitrogen dioxide emissions are the results of animal agriculture and yes these emissions greatly affect the rate of global warming. Species extinction and habitat destruction are just a few of the package results from the intense farming of these creature.

As veganism is a lifestyle, not just a diet, many vegans also buy animal cruelty free products, including toiletries, clothes and hair products, by enxtension boycotting products that test on animals. Superdurg’s own brand products are all labelled as ‘cruelty free’.

Even if this hasn’t completely convinced you to become vegan, I hope that it has inspired you to ask questions. Question everything, even the things that you take for granted; with knowledge comes power.

The purpose of me discussing these issues is education. If you are aware of the cruelty and the methods that are involved in making your burgers then you can make a conscious decision to change your behaviour. Education is the most powerful weapon and if you have the knowledge to make informed choices then you have the power to change the world.